


Stronger Together

by Bubblegumgirl66



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: A CEO and a Kryptonian walk into a bar, A ton of fools, Angst, F/F, Floof, Genius smol bean, Kara is oblivious, Lena is done, More Yearing, Plot Twist, Supergay, Yearning, alex is done, even more yearning, lesbian activity, pew pew, potstickers, sexual tension through the roof
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-27
Updated: 2021-01-27
Packaged: 2021-03-09 19:20:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,842
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27731431
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bubblegumgirl66/pseuds/Bubblegumgirl66
Summary: Lena and Supergirl's relationship is at best rocky after Crisis, but what happens when a horrific secret is revealed that turns her Lena's life upside down, sacrifices are made, lives are lost, and blood is spilt, will they be able to mend broken bonds, or wil Lena prove just how much of a Luthor she can really be?
Relationships: Kara Danvers/Lena Luthor/Supergirl
Kudos: 17





	1. Chapter One

Lillian Luthor was not one for meaningless trinkets and she knew that most things, even people, were expendable. In the grand scheme of things, one life for millions was a sacrifice that she would make without a second thought. So as she held her granddaughter in her arms, her own daughter lying on the hospital bed with tears of pain and exhaustion running down her face, she had considered the child as nothing more than a means to an end, a worthless bauble. 

She had quickly learned as a child that money was what truly lay in the hearts of most men and the same could be said about the doctors that whisked the child away. The child was left with nothing but a name. Alice Kieran Luthor. The child of course would have no idea that she was a Luthor and Lillian planned to keep it that way.

The child had inherited her mother’s fair green eyes that shone in the bright hospital lights. She had seemed rather calm for a child as she peered curiously around the room. Lillian had been quick to snatch her from her mother’s grasp and wrap the child in a hospital blanket. 

“What are you doing.” She had shouted. “Where’s my baby!”

Lillian had tried to console her as sobs had wracked her daughter’s frail body. She hadn’t even gotten to see her daughter and she hardly spoke to anyone after that day, until she discovered her boxes. So, she stuffed her emotions inside, overflowing her boxes with her pain, grief, and anger until she forgot that she had ever had emotions in the first place shoving them into a place deep inside of her and burying them, but not forgetting them. She threw herself into her work after that, pushing herself beyond her limits, finding cures and theories and Lillian was comforted by the fact that Lena could never have achieved such things with a child to hold her back.

Lena hadn’t cried since that day, she did not admire that frail, broken person that had let ugly sobs roll over her in neverending waves. So, Lena put up a facade that was so impeccable, she almost fooled herself into thinking that there was no hole in her heart, no empty void that perhaps a child could have filled. Lena always presented herself, head held high, confidence radiating from her and not a crack in her professional mask. Make up in her face like war paint and a dangerous smirk painted on her lips, daring the world to oppose her. She was used to being underestimated, and had learned to use it to her own advantage, building a reputation for herself and crawling and scratching her way out of the hole that her family’s name had put her in.

Years later, she had fooled herself. It had been fourteen years since that day at the hospital with its too white walls and overwhelming steh of bleach and hand sanitizer, but Lena still thought of it sometimes. Grief was unlike any other pain that she had felt before. It had a mind of its own and wormed its way through the cracks in her mask and the holes in her armour. It was sharp and it stung, and she carried it around. For Lena was not new to grief and knew its charms, for she had lost her mother and father and her brother had buried himself so deep into his own mind that she had lost him as well. She had never had Lillian to begin with. Yes, she had known grief, but she wore it wonderfully well.  
The child in turn was fostered, tossed from house to hous like a hot potato, or an unwanted thing with no home or place, a puzzle piece that didn’t fit the puzzle she had been stuffed into. She tried, she held her head high and tried desperately to put on a facade, as her mother had done, but her mask would slip and it had one too many cracks. She assumed, from what she had been told, that her mother had not wanted her, nor would she ever. She didn’t need her mother though, at least, that’s what she convinced herself and as the years went by, her mask and armour hardened and with every home that she was tossed into, with every drunk, abuser, or druggie that fostered her it hardened into something so utterly indestructible that she had quite forgotten the person that she had been before. 

So, by the time her fourteenth birthday came and passed, she too had made a name for herself. Unlike her mother, she did not bury her unspoken anger, but instead channeled it and funneled it, pushing herself to be better. So, even as she sat in the cold, dim basement of her new foster father, she was tinkering. Tinkering was something that she thoroughly enjoyed, as it gave her a strange peace of mind. Putting parts together as if building up her own armour and repairing her own heart that she thought she had misplaced somewhere, or had not been given one. She liked to see how things worked and loved to take them apart and put them back together over and over again until her hands moved of their own accord and she would look at them with dull eyes, wondering if the object she was holding could truly be fixed, for she too felt as though she was broken beyond repair.

Her foster parents were not terrible, per say, they were simply ignorant, but she liked tham far more than her last set, they had been far more...physical with her. She had long since learned how to pick locks and would make her way out of the basement and wander about the city that she had been thrown into, for she had been to many. Nobody took notice of the skinny green-eyed girl with raven hair that would wander about the alleys lazily, although in reality, she was searching for more parts for a new invention. She did this often, searching for parts, trinkets that, like her, were often tossed away and didn’t seem to belong anywhere. She had built many things in her time with her foster parents, including a small grappling hook that could support her, a flashlight, compass, and a watch. She was quite proud of her trinkets, but had gotten used to hiding them from prying eyes, as her foster parents had been less than welcoming about her trinkets. 

Although she didn’t know much about the medical world, she also had a small pack of bandages and gauze that she would use when things got rough at the house. She never referred to it as a home, because it was temporary, and she had no doubt that she would move again to yet another city by the end of the month like clockwork. She had gotten used to feeling unwanted, but it wasn’t too bad, or so she tried to convince herself.

As Alice crept out of her parent’s grimy, decaying house and climbed onto the roof through the fire escape, she felt a rare uninterrupted moment of freedom under the stars that shone a little bit brighter tonight. She loved to look at the stars and she was often told that she had her head in the clouds. Her peace was quickly interrupted by an iron grip around her ankle and her father grabbed her ankle and drunkenly attempted to drag her back through the window.  
She managed to shine her flashlight in his eyes, causing him to stumble back and loosen his grip, managing to twist her ankle, leaving an angry red mark that she was sure would bruise. Scrambling up the ladder with a grimace, Alice sat on the rooftop, legs dangling. She jumped when someone landed beside her, although the figure didn’t see her. Noticing the billowing cape, she breathed a sigh of relief and cleared her throat. The figure spun around and Alice jumped again.

“Lena,” Supergirl asked and Alice raised an eyebrow.

“Um no, sorry, my name’s Alice.” She rubbed the back of her neck.

Supergirl shook her head to clear her thoughts and stood up. She took in Alice’s ragged clothes and the multiple bruises and scars dotting her skinny frame.

“What happened to you,” she asked, clearing her throat as her tone became determined once again.

Alice waved her off, “It’s nothing, I’m just really clumsy.” She didn’t know why she was lying, but she had a feeling that even if she told the girl of steel, she would probably end up in a house that was even worse than this one, and there had been a few.

Supergirl could hear the girl’s heart rate increase and she knew that she was lying, but didn’t press as the girl gazed back up at the stars. 

“You know, my planet would be right there,” Supergirl said, surprising both herself and Alice.

“Krypton,” Alice asked and Supergirl nodded.

“It was a lot different than earth and it was hard to fit in a first,” she found herself explaining and she wondered why she was telling this girl so much, but she felt calm around her and she suspected that her stress over Lena had something to do with it.

“I get that, it was hard for me to fit in too, even if I am just a human, but I guess that’s what makes us all unique, you know,” Alice said and upon seeing Supergirl’s puzzled expression, she continued.

“Well, I’m not sure how it was on Krypton, but here, everyone is different. Can you imagine if we were all the same, how boring would that be? I mean our mistakes are what make us human and alien alike, they give us personality.”

Supergirl’s eyes widened at the young girl who had turned her gaze to her, her emerald eyes reminding her so much of Lena. “On Krypton, we didn’t have very much individuality, we all strived to maintain our culture, but science was the main focus of our people.”  
Alice just nodded, scooting a little closer to the girl of steel and pulling out a chocolate bar that she had gotten for her last birthday that was stale, but good enough. She split it in half and handed it to her. “Krypton sounds nice,” She said softly and Supergirl smiled sadly, taking the chocolate bar from the girl.

“It was, our people valued religion and other races, but here things are so different. It just makes me miss home,” Her voice became quiet.

“Everyone gets lonely sometimes, no matter how strong you are, but home isn’t always a place, sometimes it’s people or even just a feeling,” Alice said, looking back up at the stars and crossing her arms in an effort to warm them.

“Don’t you have a coat,” Supergirl asked. Due to her DNA, she didn’t get cold, but knew how fragile humans could be. Alice shook her head, but didn’t say anything. 

Alice jumped when she heard a shattering from inside and using her super hearing, Supergirl could hear what sounded like a man punching something. Alice jumped up and ran back over to the ladder, wincing slightly at the state of her ankle. Supergirl grabbed her wrist.

“You don’t have to go back there you know.”

Alice just smiled sadly and climbed down the ladder, mock saluting the girl of steel and then disappearing from view. Supergirl stood and turned on her com so that her sister could hear her. She would fix this. Alice looked up at the stars as though seeing them for the first and last time, she noticed there ethereal glow and for a moment her mask faded, but she reapplied it as she heard another crashing sound from inside.

Alice climbed through the window just as an empty beer bottle was thrown at her head, shattering the wall beside her. Her foster ‘brother’ Daniel was pinned to the wall with one hand around his neck, gasping for air. His eyes lit up upon seeing her, but it didn’t last long as his windpipe was slowly crushed. Alice took in the six year old boy and ran over to her father, trying to pull his arm away from Daniel’s neck, but to no avail. Just as Daniel faded into unconsciousness, her father loosened his grip, letting the boy fall to the ground gasping for breath.

Alice rushed to his side, but her father grabbed her by her hair. She could hear rain begin to pound on the roof and her pulse in her ears as he slammed her by her side against the wall. She screamed as she heard her rib snap like a twig and Daniel stood up shakily, pushing her father off of her. Alice clutched her side and she could smell the alcohol on her father’s breath. Daniel was shouting at the man who said nothing but only slammed his fist into Daniel’s nose. Daniel’s head went flying back against the jagged stone mantle of the fireplace, leaving a pool of blood as his body crumpled to the floor. Alice let out a scream of horror and rushed to his side.

The boy’s nose was bent and horribly disfigured, pushing itself back into his skull and she was sure that the bones had entered his brain. There was a large dent in the back of his skull, blood leaking into his light blond hair. His breathing was shaky as Alice held him until his eyes faded, losing their spark of curiosity and wonder as she showed him one of her trinkets. Now, they were dull and lifeless, but his skin was still rosy and warm, as though he was only napping. She let out an ugly sob, barely registering the man behind her as she tried desperately to stop the bleeding, only succeeding in covering her hands in the liquid, which horrified her. She let out an agonizing scream and a sob as her father pressed the searing hot poker against her side, burning through her shirt. For a moment all she saw was white as she heard a window shatter and a small canister landed in their living room.

Her hands were covered in stick, crimson blood as she sprinted from the room as she heard footsteps pounding into her house and saw a red cape. Her breathing was frantic and she could hear her pulse pounding in her ears as she slammed open the door and sprinted outside and into the pouring rain. She quickly became soaked as she let out another scream of pain as her ribs brushed against one another. She heard the blaring of horns and the burning of rubber filled her nose, but she didn’t stop she couldn’t because she didn’t know what would happen if she did, where she would end up and what life would be like if she let herself succumb to the pain that flooded her body and the white sparks that hung on the edges of her vision. 

The blood hadn’t washed from her hands as she pumped her arms, ignoring their grinding sound her ribs made and the stabbing pain that shot up her side at the motion. Tears were still running down her face as Daniel’s face invaded her mind, the image making its way through the cracks in her mask.The pain was in waves and it was unlike anything that she had ever felt before. Daniel had made her open up, let her guard down, only for him to fade away, just like everyone. Like her mother and caregivers, like her best friend Felix that Supergirl hadn’t saved from jumping off a bridge after his mother flatlined due to an overdose. These thoughts left a bitter taste in her mouth, but she wasn’t sure if it was because of the pain or because of the memories that began to come to her in flashes.

She peeled off her shirt that had partially seared into her skin, causing her to whimper in pain, but her voice was hoarse from the screams and sobs. She was left in a sweater that she had stuffed into her backpack that she didn’t remember grabbing. She numbly put it on, not wanting to look at her exposed skin. She winced again as the fabric touched her singed side. Turning abruptly into an alley, she lifted her sweater and wrapped her bandages tightly around her middle, wincing and squeezing more tears out of her red, puffy eyes. She leaned against the wall, wanting to collapse onto the ground, but any movement made her side feel as though she was being stabbed. Trying to distract herself from her pain, she took in her surroundings. 

The rain had increased to buckets and she was standing outside of an imposing looking building called L-Corp. She noticed that some of her blood had smeared onto the clear glass window and she looked up just in time for a secretary to look up. The woman let out a scream upon seeing her and Alice looked at herself in their reflection of the window, taking in her soaking hair, bloody hands, bruised face, and sweater that was stained red in place from past punishments.

She saw the women pick up her phone with shaking hands and practically slaw her fingers down on the buttons. Alice didn’t stick around long enough to see what happened. She pulled out her grappling hook with shaking hands and aimed it upwards, letting it wrap discreetly around a balcony. She noticed Supergirl fly into the window, but she didn’t have the energy to care as she let the grappling hook drag her upwards. She tightened her ragged shirt around her side, trying to ignore the fact that blood was draining from her wound fast. She heard muffled voices as she silently lifted herself up onto the balcony.

“Kara, what does all of this have to do with me?” 

The voice sounded quite cold and Alice unconsciously ducked further into the shadows, watching curiously from behind the wall. 

“Lena, she looks just like you,” she heard the caped hero exclaim.

“What are you insinuating,” the woman asked, her voice low and dangerous.

“Lena, she has green eyes, dark hair-”

“Get out,” The cold tone of the voice made Alice shiver unintentionally and she could hear the barely contained rage.

“Lena-”

“No, you do not get to reopen that wound, not after everything you’ve already done. Now leave.”

Alice gritted her teeth together as her ribs rubbed together painfully and her heart skipped a beat as she heard the girl of steel again.

“Lena, there’s someone here.”

Alice took this time to step out of the balcony and into the office, sheepishly. She heard Supergirl gasp, before everything turned dark and her blood smeared onto the white tiled floor. Her body fell into itself like a rag doll, her green eyes fluttering shut.

Supergirl rushed over to the girl, Lena following behind her. They lifted the girl’s sweater to reveal a multitude of different sized scars and bruises. Her rib was obviously broken and Supergirl peeled back the shirt from her side to reveal an ugly burn mark that seemed unnatural on her pale skin. Alice’s head was burning as Supergirl called her sister to get over to L-corp.


	2. Chapter Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, it's short, the next one will be longer!

Alice scoffs, but her eyes widen. “I’m sorry, what?”

Lena raised her voice. “You’re my daughter.”

She looks up and tears come to Alice’s eyes.

“No, that can’t be right,” she mumbles to herself, as she glances up at Lena who freezes.  
“Y-you left me,” Alice says softly,” you’re- you were supposed to be my mom, you were supposed to love me, supposed to care for me! You left me, you left me alone, how could you do that!?”

She’s shouting now and Lena’s legs tremble as she lets out a sob.

“I-I never meant to hurt you. My mother told me that you were dead.”

Alice’s eyes widen and she holds her head in her hands. “Lillian,” she mumbles and Lena’s eyes widen, but she nods.

Alice looks up, eyes red. “So, are you gonna put me back in the system. A CEO like you would never have time for a burden like me, huh,” she chuckles coldly and Lena shakes her head.  
“Alice, that’s not true I-I’d like to be your mother,” Lena exclaims and her eyes widen as her words catch up with her.

Alice scoffs. “It’s a little late for that,” her expression softens,”but I’m willing to give it a shot.”  
Tears of joy spring to Lena’s eyes at having her daughter alive and in front of her and before anyone can stop her, she envelops Alice in a hug. Alice immediately tenses up and Lena lets her go, sheepishly. 

Alex clears her throat and Alice rolls her eyes, but smiles. “So, Lena, I’m gonna assume that you and Lex don’t get along.”

Lena chuckles. “I think you could assume that, yes.”

“Oh thank god, if I have to endure another freaking game of chess, I might die.”

Supergirl laughs and Lena rolls her eyes, but chuckles as well. Alice continues.

“He’s all like ‘I’m Lex Luthor, everyone bow down to me’ it’s so annoying and then when Lillian would punish me, all he did was smile which was creepy-” Lena interrupts her.

“How would she punish you?”

Alice pales, as though just realizing what she said. “Oh um you know,” she mumbles and Lena raises an eyebrow and she relents.

“She liked to test things out on me, but it was never anything serious,” she scrambles to say and Lena sees red until she notices the tears in Alice’s eyes.

“She-she didn’t do it very often ju-just when I deserved it,” Alice rambles and Lena’s gaze darkens.

Alex speaks up. “Alice, nobody deserves that.”

Alice shakes her head vigorously. “Yes I did, I was a failure.”

She sounded so sure of herself and Lena feels like someone twisted a dagger in her heart. Truly, love scared her. Love was like giving someone a loaded gun aimed at your heart and asking-begging-them not to shoot, as Kara had done to her. She pushed away the memory.

“Alice,” she said softly and Alice looked up slowly,” how would you like to stay with me for a while?”

A small smile creeps onto her face. “I’d like nothing more.” 

Alice hardly knew what she was getting into until she walked into Lena’s ginormous apartment that was bigger than all of the places she had ever stayed combined. Her eyes widened as she looked around in wonder, missing the looks of adoration her mother kept shooting her. Lena could hardly believe what was happening as she watched her daughter. If you told her yesterday that her daughter wasn’t only alive, but that they would be reunited, she probably would have had you committed to Arkham, but upon seeing the girl standing only a few feet away, eyes sparkling with wonder...she had never been happier.

“Are you hungry,” Lena asked after a while and Alice nodded hesitantly as they made their way to the island as Lena opened her fridge that probably could have fit the both of them inside of it. Alice gaped at it as Lena pulled out some chinese takeout sheepishly.

“Is chinese okay,’ she asked, rubbing the back of her neck.

“Chinese,” Alice asked curiously and Lena gaped at the girl who had an eyebrow raised in curiosity. Lena hurriedly opened the bag and heated up the food, laughing as her daughter struggled with the chopsticks.

“These things are impossible,” she exclaimed and Lena chuckled. Eventually, Alice gave up and used her hands that made Lena snort. When they finished, Lena made Alice eat her portion, too after realizing how hungry the girl was, Lena spoke up.

“So, would you like to watch something?”

Alice nodded, skipping over to the living room. Lena laughed and shook her head. To Alice, this all felt like a dream. Her mother did want her and not only that, she seemed to not be evil for once, which was a definite bonus. Alice hopped up onto the couch excitedly and Lena was reminded of a puppy.  
“Any suggestions,” Lena asked and Alice immediately wanted to watch a documentary on animals. Lena laughed and shook her head but compiled.

Lena glanced at the gap between her and her daughter, her daughter choosing to settle on the far end of the couch. She understood her hesitation, but right now, she was just glad to have her daughter back. She could be patient. Alice was grateful that Lena didn’t push her and she loved watching the marine animals the most, loving the flow of movements. In fact, she was so engrossed in the show that she jumped when she heard the chime of the doorbell. Lena’s eyebrows knitted together in confusion, but she stood to open the door. She frowned upon seeing Kara holding burgers, rubbing her neck sheepishly.

“Uh Supergirl told me what happened,” she stuttered, knowing that Alice could probably hear her and Len gave her a ‘really’ look, but hesitantly let her inside. Alice tensed upon seeing the stranger, not being used to meeting so many people in one day, but gave her a small wave. Kara waved back, beaming and Alice grinned, immediately liking the woman.

Neither of the women were really sure how to feel. Both of them had so much that they regretted but like Kara had said, they couldn’t go back and change it, as much as they wished they could. They were both trying not to be so cold with one another and they knew thet what they had would never truly be the same, but hopefully, with time, they would be able to create something new.

“I come bearing gifts,” Kara exclaims, making them both laugh and Alice immediately brightens. Lena wonders how long it's been since she’s eaten.

“I love burgers, but pizza and potstickers are my most favorite meal,” Alice said and Kara’s eyes widened, barely holding back a squeal.

Alice dug into the meal, trying and failing to not be messy while Kara gave up immediately on not making a mess. Lena rubbed her temple sarcastically at the two, but her grin never faded upon seeing Alice’s bright smile. Alice and Kara’s noses wrinkled simultaneously upon seeing the pickle in their burgers.

“Eww, a veggie,” they said in unison before bursting into laughter and Lena raised an eyebrow, but laughed as well, eating both of their pickles, making Alice and Kara gasp in horror. Alice was still wary around the both of them, tensing up to contact, but she liked them both and hoped that everyday would be like this.


	3. Chapter Three

Looking back, it probably hadn’t been a good idea for Lena to let Kara give her daughter seven caffeine loaded drinks as she was practically bouncing off the walls, running around her apartment and exploring everything as Lena tried and failed to suppress a smile. Kara was chasing her around, which only made the girl run faster, causing expensive vases to wobble precariously. Eventually, Alice collapsed onto a chair, panting and laughing with Kara, whose face had lit up with joy.   
“You know,” Kara started, “Lena here has never had chicken wings.”

Lena facepalmed upon seeing her daughter’s shocked expression.

“And you call yourself my mother,” she joked, bursting into another round of laughter.

Lena threw a pillow at the young girl which just made her laugh harder. Around eleven, Alice stood yawning.

“I think someone’s tired,” Kara says, wiggling her eyebrows and smirking. Alice rolls her eyes and snatches her blanket with a ‘hey’ of protest, sticking her tongue out. She tries and fails to get comfy for a few minutes until she huffs and with a small squeak of surprise from Lena, who was starting to doze off herself, she settles into the CEO’s side.

Kara practically has sparkles in her eyes at the sight and Lena isn’t much better. Alice is quick to fall asleep, eventually having relaxed in the raven woman’s arms. Lena takes in how peaceful the girl looks while sleeping and brushes some hair from her face. That night, she vowed to herself that she would never again let anyone take her daughter from her.

Lena is awoken by a scream from the kitchen and the sound of the smoke alarm going off.  
“Kara you’re on your own,” Alice yells from the kitchen.

“Hey that’s sabotage! You-you traitor!”

“I’m not the one who broke the toaster!”

“That was an accident,” kara whines.

“You’re an accident,” Alice laughs.

“Hey,” Kara protests, but chuckles herself.

Lena wraps the blanket around herself, mentally preparing herself for the kitchen. She is greeted by her toaster in pieces on the counter, Kara standing on a chair and repeatedly hitting the alarms with a towel, and Alice looked both amused and nervous at the pot on the stove that was boiling over. Alice beams upon seeing Lena and her heart melts. Alice’s face is covered in flour and Kara isn’t much better.

“Hey, Lena,” Kara chuckles nervously and Lena just sighs.

“We were trying to make you breakfast but someone who shall not be named, attacked the toaster,” Alice says, smirking and Kara’s quick to defend herself.

“Hey, that toaster was growling at me, it was about to attack!”

“You threw it out of the window Kara!”

Lena’s eyes widen in amusement and curiosity as the blonde tries and fails to defend herself. Lena laughs.

“Let’s order breakfast, shall we?”

“That’d probably be best,” Alice says and Kara looks like she wants to argue, but then the lid of the pot explodes off of the pot, narrowly missing Alice, who jumps, and she gulps, nodding.

Twenty minutes and a feast fit for a king later, Kara is finally full. Alice gapes at the woman and Lena looks both amused and disgusted. Lena quickly realizes how little the girl is eating and makes a note to try and get her to eat more. Lena’s own eating schedule is pretty rocky, Kara mostly having to deliver takeout to her office when she forgets to eat, which is far more often than she’d like to admit. 

Abruptly, Alice hops off of her stool and grabs her backpack from where she set it on the chair last night, being extremely careful with it. She brings it back to the table with a grunt. Carefully, she reaches into the backpack, pushing aside syrup covered plates. Lena raised a curious eyebrow. Alice sets her trinkets cautiously on the table and both women gape at them.

“I-I don’t usually show people these I just-I figured that you being a scientist maybe you could just, uh give me some tips? It’s fine if you don’t want to, it’s pretty stupid, I know-”

Lena cuts her off, picking up the compass carefully, examining the dial. “Did-did you build these yourself?”

Alice nods hesitantly and Kara’s eyes widen as she picks up the grappling hook. Lena’s eyes brim with tears, but she pushes them down, berating herself for being the most sappy person alive. Alice was still looking at her nervously and Lena cleared her throat.

“I-I’d love to.”

Lena didn’t think that it was possibly for anyone to smile as large as Alice did and she felt her mask slipping down around the girl, as it had with Kara. 

Lena’s about to speak again when Kara activates the grappling hook and shatters some very expensive looking wine glasses. Lena groans and Alice winces at Kara’s sheepish expression.

“What if we got out of the house today,” Lena suggests and Alice nods vigorously, beaming.

Lena quickly throws on some jeans and a comfy shirt and Kara throws on one of her many signature cardigans that she leaves hidden from Lena’s view all over her apartment, much to the CEO’s annoyance. Alice puts back on her sweater that was cleaned of its blood, although the metallic scent still lingers. Grief is a funny thing, it can fade for days and then come in torrents that tear down walls as though they were made of straw, breaking the defensives we put up. Alice knows that she’ll always hurt for Daniel, but when she pictures his funny little snort that he did whenever she used to make funny faces, she knows that he’d just want her to be happy. He had used to call her a snorefest, she recalls with a chuckle.

“Are you two done making eyes at each other or can we leave,” Alice yells, leaning against the front door. Both women flush a deep scarlet and Alice smirks in victory as they glare at her. Alice practically skips down the hall and outside, making Lena laugh.

“Is there somewhere that you’d like to go,” Lena asks and Alice simply grabs both of their hands, dragging them along and Lena is grateful that she decided against wearing heels.

Lena peers around nervously as they venture deeper into a certain part of the city that she’d rather avoid. She can sense Kara tense beside her, ready to defend them both at the slightest hint of danger and she relaxes a little. Alice meanwhile is practically buzzing with energy, skillfully making her way through the maze of alleyways. Her grips on their arms hadn’t faltered once as she squealed in excitement, putting random objects into her backpack that had both women scratching their heads. These included a roll of twine, a broken bottle, a spring, the head of a teddy bear, a plastic water bottle, and a small thimble with a hole in it’s bottom. 

“Oh, oh, oh, over here,” Alice exclaimed excitedly and Lena rolled her eyes, but melted a little bit more upon seeing the excited spark in the girl’s eyes and Kara looked almost as excited as the young girl. Neither woman questioned her as the girl picked up a shattered Christmas ornament. Just as she was done putting it in her backpack, Lena spied a figure at the end of the alley. She tensed and Kara was about to hurry them along and deal with it herself when Alice picked up an empty can and threw it as hard as she could, laughing her head off as the figure rushed towards them. She let go of the women and Lena immediately missed her warmth. 

“Alice is that you,” the figure asked. The figure in turn turned out to be an elderly man wearing a grimy apron. He had a shaggy beard and a beer belly and rosy cheeks. Alice ran over to him and they both did what looked like an extremely complicated handshake.

“Hey Loui, how’s Fey,” Alice asked casually as if she hadn’t just chucked a can at the man.

“Fey’s good, the kids are good, keeping busy you know. Listen, I got news for ya.” He eyed the two women suspiciously and Lena was acutely aware of how much they stood out and how skillfully Alice seemed to fit in. Alice glanced back at them and motioned for them both to wait there as she and Loui huddled together, whispering in low voices and gesturing wildly with their hands. Lena glanced over at Kara, who she knew was listening and Kara looked away, whistling. Lena rolled her eyes. Kara sighed, giving into the shorter woman’s glare. Her voice was low as she spoke.

“There talking about a delivery of some sort and about Daniel. He was the little boy that Alice’s adopted father killed, I mentioned him.”

Lena nodded gravely. It was hard to remember what Alice had gone through and they were both a little shocked about how she handled it. Kara spoke up again. 

“Loui’s saying something about a special offer and Alice is refusing him. He sounds really urgent, almost desperate. Alice is telling him about a new stock of free pizzas. She’s using a special code to talk about the alleys and streets, I can’t make it out, but it's pretty similar to how some of the criminals that Alex takes in talk.”

Lena’s eyes flash with unholy rage and Kara immediately wants to fly into the sun. Lena’s voice is low.

“I’m sorry, but it sounded awfully like you were accusing my daughter of being a criminal, did I hear you right?”

Kara gulps, her Kryptonian strength seeming to leave her whenever Lena was around. She opens her mouth to speak when they both hear a shattering of a bottle. Lena spins around to see Alice and Loui chucking bottles at a tilted sign post and then bursting into laughter.

“See you around Loui,” Alice waves and Loui waves back, disappearing awfully quick.

“Is he a friend of yours,” Kara asks cautiously and Alice grins, nodding.

“Yeah, I’ve known him for years. He’s one of my oldest friends. He helps me find things.”

She doesn’t elaborate more and instead climbs up one of the fire escapes skillfully, quickly disappearing from view. Lena gulps. It’s no secret that she’s scared of heights, especially after all of the assination attempts over the years. Alice abruptly peaks her head over the side of the building, not at all concerned about the long fall that could be waiting for her below. Her grin is huge and Lena finds herself returning the grin.

“Are you two coming or what,” she asks before disappearing from view once more, accompanied by the sound of clanging and shattering. Lena sighs and shakes her head while Kara looks like this is more fun than she’s had in months and doesn’t hesitate to climb up after her. With a gulp, Lena climbs up as well, allowing Kara to help her up with no effort whatsoever.

Lena takes in the view, eyes wide. She could see the other side of the city from here, a jungle of alleyways and twinkling lights that reminded Kara of Mary Poppins, to her delight. Alice beamed upon seeing the two women’s reactions, beckoning them over to the ledge where she stood precariously.

“You wanna know what I do for fun, well her you are,” she says, opening her arms wide, gesturing to the entire city. With that and a little giggle, she lets herself fall off of the edge. Lena runs to peer over the ledge, Kara already there via superspeed. Alice is laughing now as she lies on a tilting tower of rat eaten mattresses that lena knows couldn’t possibly be safe. Lena exhales in relief when Alice scales the building.

Wait what?

She looks back to her daughter again, who had expertely placed her fingers on ledges and cracks that Lena never would have spotte, hoisting herself back onto the roof with a grunt, bowing dramatically. Lena raises an impressed eyebrow and Kara still looks like she’s gonna have a heart attack. Alice giggles, letting her legs dangle over the edge and zipping open her backpack.

“You know, people in this part of the city call you ‘the evil queen’,” Alice giggles and Kara laughs, even after Lena elbows her.

“They call Supergirl ‘cheerleader’ or ‘Luthor’s wife’,” Alice burst into laughter at that and Lena scoffs.

“I’m sorry, what?!”

“Oh it’s just that everyone in this side of the city has a perfect view of L-Corp, so we can all see the many, many, many times that Supergirl goes into your office. I’m pretty sure that Loui has a shrine built for you two,” Alice smirks and both women blush.

“It’s not that many times,” Kara mumbles under her breath. Alice rolls her eyes, but her smirk doesn’t fade.

“What do they call you,” Kara asks curiously and Alice’s expression turns dark. Lena glares at Kara.

“It doesn’t matter what they call me.”

That night, while Kara complains about how sore her feet are and Alice calls her Supergirl’s competition which makes Lena scoff and Kara become awfully defensive of the caped hero, Alice wonders if it’s even possible to be happier than she is right now.


	4. Chapter Four

Lena awoke with a gasp, covered in sweat and dried tears creating trails on her pale face. She looked down at her hands, expecting them to be covered in blood. She exhaled shakily, letting her eyes adjust to the darkness of her bedroom. Nightmares were nothing new to her, they had plagued her for far longer than she cared to admit. First of Lex, then of Kara, then of Jack, then of her mother, and finally, of Alice, of what Lex would do to her if he found out that they were reunited. In her dream, she had been kneeling over her, desperately trying to staunch the waterfall that erupted from her body as Lex stood over her laughing and she had watched as his face morphed into her mother’s and then into Kara’s and soon Kara was lying face down in a pool of blood beside her daughter, face frozen in horror, Lena’s reflection in her ocean blue eyes. It felt like they were right there, staring back at her and someone was screaming at her calling her a failure and she numbly realized that she was screaming at herself and she had woken up.

She sighed, running a hand through her raven hair and looking around her room. Kara had left reluctantly after Alice fell asleep, curled into her side tightly and Kara had to pry her arms off of her, her lip jutting out in a pout that had Lena rolling her eyes as she left reluctantly. Lena berated herself for wishing that the sunny smiled woman was with her, holding her as the woman had done so many times before. Her apartment was silent and the air felt heavy around her as she slipped out of her bed, her bare feet padding against her floor. She had to know that Alice was alright, that she could still rely on the dimpled smile and bright laughter when things got difficult. 

The living room was colder than she remembered and the pale light of the moon illuminated the dark room, making it glow blue through Lena’s thin cyan drapes that billowed in the wind of the open window. Alice’s blanket was folded on the chair and she had tidied up the mess that she and Kara had made when they built a rather impressive and overall gravity-defying pillow fort. Lena’s apartment felt emptier without the sound of the laughter that had filled it just the night before. She noticed that her kitchen light was on and she slowly made her way to the kitchen, noting the time on her phone as 4:00 am to her surprise.

Alice sat at the island, her legs dangling from a stool and a vast array of parts littering the island’s tiled surface as she tried and failed not to make any noise. She was mumbling under her breath and her tongue stuck out of her mouth adorably. Her eyebrows were knitted together in concentration and Lena had to contain an ‘aw’. She couldn’t ‘aw’, she was the CEO of a multi-billion dollar company for heaven’s sake! She ‘awed, she totally awed and Alice jumped, slicing her finger on a particularly sharp piece of metal. She inhaled sharply and put her finger in her mouth, sucking away the blood. Lena rushed forward frantically panicking. She had no idea what to do in these types of situations and she was rushing to find the bandages. Alice watched her, amused and cautious as she wrapped a bandage around her finger, eyeing Lena like she was crazy and Lena blew some hair from her face, a sheepish expression on her face.

“What are you doing up,” Alice asked looking back at her current project, her face slipping back into its mask of concentration. Lena slid into the stool across from her, taking in the items that Alice had picked up yesterday.

“I couldn’t sleep, you,” Lena asked, watching Alice’s nimble fingers slide gears into place. Alice didn’t look up.

“Your doorbell rang. There were people here looking for you, they had something that they wanted to give you. I thanked them and took it inside. Turned out to be a bomb and I took it apart a few hours ago. It was pretty sloppily made, but it had a few good parts,” she said casually and Lena’s eyes widened as she scoffed in disbelief. 

“Great another person out to kill me,” Lena said harshly, forgetting that Alice was there. Alice leaned back in her stool, looking up once more.

“I guess this happens often, huh,” she inquired and Lena scoffed again, rolling her eyes at all of her brother’s and mother’s attempts to kill her.

“You could say that, yes.”

Alice hummed before grinning, holding up a screwdriver. “Wanna help?”

Lena’s annoyance instantly faded and her grin matched Alice’s as she took the screwdriver from her daughter and let her daughter excitedly explain what she was building, an excited gleam in her eyes, and Lena watched her with a mixture of fascination and adoration and most of all love. Love that her daughter was still alive, love that they had reunited, and love that Alice had become an amazing person, even if she hadn’t been there to see most of it. The latter hurt the most, not being able to see her daughter’s first steps, first words, first invention. She had missed so much, but Lena vowed to make up for it, to be there for Alice. 

“So,” Alice said, grunting as she tried to push down a complicated series of springs,” how do you know Roulette?”

Lena poured herself a glass of coffee and let out an annoyed sigh. “We went to boarding school together, I’ve never liked her. Why do you ask?”

“She has a better foothold in this city than you think. She’s the one who sent the bomb, her goons all look the same. She knows everybody and her goons are everywhere, like something out of an 80’s action movie,” Alice chuckled and Lena slid back into her stool.

“What do you mean,” she asked, her forehead crinkling in concern as she set her mug down on perhaps the one part of the table that wasn’t covered in junk.

“She basically has an army of criminals at her disposal, working from in prison and outside of it. She’s making a fortune selling a drug called “White Bane” on the market. It’s very addictive and extremely dangerous, from what I hear. She’s neck-deep in human and alien trafficking alike, it’s crazy,” Alice said, not looking up from her current task of searching for a piece of glass to cover the gears with.  
“And how do you know all of this,” Lena asked and Alice finally looked up, leaning back in her stool.

“Lena, I’ve had criminal parents. It’s pretty easy to squeeze information out of a drunk man. Apparently, she’s been looking for me, wants me to build her something. I unknowingly created a weapon for her a year or two ago from some parts that kept appearing on my doorstep. I put it together and ‘wow’ a bomb! Loui thinks I should, says she's dangerous, but whatever she wants can’t be good.”

Lena’s eyes widened. “You built a bomb,” she said, not believing it herself.

Alice nodded gravely. “Yeah, but I figured out what it was before I could finish it and got rid of all the pieces. She probably wants me to finish it or build her something else.”

“Why would she send you a bomb,” Lena asked and Alice sighed.

“It was a test, she wanted to see if I’ve still got my knack for building.”

Lena was silent, still trying to process what had happened. 

“You’re friends with Supergirl, right and Alex that F.B.I agent,” Alice asks and Lena nods, figuring out what she’s getting at.

“Fine you can help, but only if you promise to stay out of trouble,” Lena says and Alice squeals, looking far too excited about this and Lena tries and fails to suppress a grin.

After a short call to Alex and another one to Kara, they arrive, Supergirl landing on Lena’s balcony and Alex had already arrived via motorcycle.

“What’s the problem Miss Luthor,” Supergirl says, all business and Lena does the same. Alice stands up, clearing away the junk on the island.

“Alice has information on Roulette,” Lena says and Supergirl’s eyebrows shoot up while Alex looks suspicious, amused, curious, and concerned all at once. Alice motions for them all to sit down, not bothering to see if they obey and Lena’s impressed by the girl’s casual demeanor, although inside Alice is buzzing with nervous energy, but hides it well. Alice looks up expectantly and they all slide into the stools, Alex beside Alice and Kara and Lena across from one another.

“A few years ago, I was tasked to build a bomb by her, don’t worry, I never finished it, but she sent a bomb to Lena’s this morning so she either knows I’m here or is trying to kill her. I know that she has goons working for her all over the city. She's been making millions in drug, human, and alien trafficking alike. I know where she operates and I can get you there, but there’s a little, tiny, barely-there hiccup.”

She winces after saying her last sentence and upon seeing the warning look on her mother’s face.

“What is it,” Supergirl asks, the infamous crinkle appearing between her eyebrows and it takes all of Alex’s strength not to tease her about it.

“Well,” Alice says, rubbing the back of her neck,” my friend on the street told me that he has the invitation for one of her galas. I swear that lady has like fifty galas a month. Anyway, he can get me in, but...I have to go alone.”

That’s all it takes for Lena to explode, throwing up her hands and letting her Irish accent out in her words as Alex jumps up to restrain her and Supergirl uses her super speed to rush to Alice who looks both terrified and concerned.

“We aren’t just going to hand you over to her, alone, without backup,” she yells, taking a deep breath upon seeing Alex’s ‘calm down’ look and the fear in her daughter’s eyes, she runs a hand through her raven locks and sighs.

“Lena of course we aren’t just going to hand your daughter over to one of National Cities' most wanted fugitives,” Alex reassures and Alice looks like she wants to argue, but Supergirl gives her a look and she shuts her mouth.

Alice sighs. “The gala is in two days.”

Supergirl nods and Lena shoots Alice a look that pretty much just says ‘don’t you dare try anything’ and Alice raises her arms in surrender like she would do anything that stupid.

Gunshots echoed through the foyer and Alice briefly wondered what had been going through her head when she agreed to meet up with Louie. She figured that even if she made it through this, which seemed unlikely due to the fact that the goons outside were breaking the door down, her mother would probably kill her. 

It wasn’t like Louie had betrayed her before, although she knew that that had been little reason to meet up with him. Alone. At night. On the other side of town. She groaned, she really was an idiot. At least she had managed to send her location to Alex and maybe Supergirl would make it in time. She jumped as a fist smashed through the door of the storage room that she was hiding in. Her hopes dwindled.

This wouldn’t all be for nothing however, she had at least managed to figure out what Roulette was up to; nothing good. How she had gotten ahold of a Kryptonian pod she had no idea, but at least she knew why she was wanted, it turned out that her Luthor genes were still out to screw with her life. She sighed as the door was ripped apart, she just couldn’t catch a break.

She felt bad for the security guards that had been guarding the building before it had been flooded with poorly dressed goons. The door exploded open and Alice jumped again as men dressed in black rushed at her, their combat boots making the ground practically shake beneath her. She hadn’t struggled as they ‘bagged and gagged’ her, something she was all too familiar with, which was another thing she had filed to tell her mother.

She tripped over her own feet as a guard roughly pulled her by her arm through the building. She hoped that Lena had gotten her message, well, the rushed note that she had left on her bedside table that explained what was going on and where she was going.

“Alice Kieren Luthor!”

Alice flinched, yup, she had gotten it.


End file.
